When you think of Macklemore and the Grammys, what comes to mind? You probably flash back to 2014, when the "Thrift Shop" rapper won Best Rap Album for The Heist in the year Kendrick Lamar released good kid, m.A.A.d City.
The rap world was outraged—how could any album get Best Rap Album ahead of the already-iconic GKMC? Macklemore felt guilty about it, too, and Instagrammed a photo of the text he sent to Kendrick that said, among other things, “it’s weird and sucks that I robbed you.”
Yeah, just an awkward situation in its entirety.
Though there's no conclusive evidence, perhaps that situation has factored into the thought process for Macklemore and his musical partner, Ryan Lewis, as they have chosen not to submit their 2016 album, This Unruly Mess I’ve Made, for Grammy nomination consideration, according to the Associated Press.
Macklemore, the rapper who used to sport the ubiquitous haircut, and Lewis, the producer who makes magic happen in the background, claimed four awards at the 2014 Grammys.
They claimed Best Rap Album ahead of not only Kendrick, but also Kanye, Jay Z, and Drake. It would seem to be a momentous victory for the duo that had struggled for years to reach the mainstream scene, but Macklemore’s guilt was clear.
A number of people criticized Macklemore for posting the text on social media. But for his part, Kendrick Lamar congratulated the Seattle rapper.
“It’s well deserved; he did what he did, man,” Kendrick said at the time. “He went out there and hustled and grinded. Everything happens for a reason; the universe comes back around, that’s how it go.”
Frank Ocean also withheld his phenomenal 2016 albums, Blonde and Endless, from Grammy nominations. He criticized the Grammy award process.
"That institution certainly has nostalgic importance," Ocean said. "It just doesn’t seem to be representing very well for people who come from where I come from, and hold down what I hold down."
